


Unlikely bonding

by kirisame (taotrooper)



Category: Cardcaptor Sakura
Genre: 5 Things, Canon - Anime, Gen, Male-Female Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-09-28
Updated: 2012-09-28
Packaged: 2017-11-15 04:43:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/523267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/taotrooper/pseuds/kirisame
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for a "5 Things That Never Happened To..." challenge. From all of Sakura's classmates, the most intrigued by the paranormal was always Naoko. What if she had become good friends with the English transfer student?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unlikely bonding

**Act I: if she had lunch with him**

There was something about the new student, she thought. It was not like she wasn't used to strange, foreign people in the classroom (one of the 108 mysteries of Tomoeda: how her group get stuck with that kind of transfer kids), but he had an aura of mystery and wisdom around him that the Lis lacked of. Or maybe it was her misconception, since he not only was British (nationality she happened to fancy), but also looked like one of her favorite literary characters. And his first name sounded so pretty, almost Elvish. Could it be Welsh or Irish, maybe?

The boy was a loner. Granted, he sometimes hanged out with a friend of hers, and he could start a conversation with anyone, as his Japanese was flawless, but still... most of the time, he would eat his lunch alone, observing his classmates. Perhaps he was, deep down, shy. Perhaps he was nostalgic, so far away from home.

She was curious, she wanted to know him better, as she was certain he would be an interesting person. She could speak a little bit of English anyway, maybe he'd help her improve it. And asking random questions wasn't enough. So, why not? She didn't have anything to lose anyway.

"Are you coming to lunch with us, Naoko-chan?"

"Not today, Rika-chan. I'll do something unusual."

 

"May I sit here, Hiiragizawa-kun?", she asked. He was eating beneath a tree, relaxed. He glanced at her, perplex, not expecting this at all.

"Sure," he replied, and politely grinned. He wasn't annoyed by Naoko's presence. He was just surprised.

"Eh? You're eating from a bento and with chopsticks? That's strange!"

"Why is it strange? I thought it was a normal thing to do in this country."

"I know, but I thought in England..."

"We have a saying: 'When in Rome do as the Romans do.' I like to integrate myself to the local system, you see," he chuckled. She liked his laugh.

"And to think I brought a sandwich today. I'm not a good example, right?" He chuckled again, as she showed her lunch. "Unlike mine, your food looks delicious! Where did you buy it?"

"Nowhere. I got up early and made it, along with my roommate's."

"Wow! You can also cook Japanese food? That's amazing! I'm no good at this stuff."

They ate in silence for some minutes.

"Why aren't you with Mihara-san and Sasaki-san? Did you girls have a fight?"

"Oh, no. I, um, wanted to have lunch with Hiiragizawa-kun today."

"Why is that, if I may ask?"

"I don't know... you seem like an interesting guy, but you're almost always isolated on the recess. I thought you might feel lonely or bored, you might need to talk to someone. Even though you're friend of Sakura-chan, you still don't hang out a lot with us. So, 'if Mohammed won't go to the mountain, the mountain will go to Mohammed'. Yet another saying for you."

He opened his eyes wide.

"That's thoughtful of you, Yanagisawa-san."

"But if you don't like me or find me annoying, I don't mind and I'll never bother you again."

"Um, no, please stay. You're not annoying at all. But maybe you're overestimating me. I'm not that interesting: I'm more of an oddball."

"Nonsense, you're not an oddball, you're just different to us. There's nothing wrong with that. Besides," she grinned, "normality is overrated."

Eriol smiled, too. The girl made a great point there.

 

**Act II: if she became his friend**

She continued having lunch with Eriol almost every day. Chiharu and Naoko teased her about the fact, and Tomoyo went beyond that and asked her if she wanted to go to Twin Bells to get a Teddy bear kit. She ignored them: she knew she didn't have a crush on him. Granted, his deep blue eyes were so beautiful, and his smile was charming and sweet, but still... it was not a crush, really. Not yet, at least: maybe if she knew him better. It was the beginning of a friendship, nothing more.

They discovered they had things in common. When she counted the number of books she had read in her eleven years, he affirmed he had read at least four times more than that, and recognized the classic ones out of her list (he was a huge fan of Edgar Allen Poe as well.) When she told him she was taking piano lessons, he admitted he loved to play that instrument (they both liked Chopin's mazurkas.) When she said she found black cats so pretty, he agreed and told her he had one himself (he just restrained to add it had wings.) When she rambled on how fascinating Victorian era was to her, he didn't stop giving her random facts about that time, and some related book recs.

Finally, she convinced him to eat with her and her friends, instead of watching from afar. He had nothing to regret, as he could have his eye on the Card Mistress from up close, he could have intellectual and bizarre conversations with his brand new friend, and back up Yamazaki's lies more often. It was a warm feeling, and he didn't want to spy them on a tree by himself ever again. Eriol restructured his plans for them to fit his reformed daily routines. He easily forgot who he was and what was he doing there to begin with.

Also, she told him to call her by her first name, like he did with Sakura. He accepted, under the condition she would do the same with him. At last, she had an excuse to pronounce the pretty word that sounded like Elvish.

 

**Act III: if she noticed**

She hid the notebook, but it was too late.

"What were you writing, Naoko-san? A new fiction tale?"

"Uh, no, it was... something personal. It's not important."

"Oh, come on, you can tell me. I know how to keep a secret."

"Don't doubt that, Eriol-kun, you're always keeping secrets from _me_."

"My secrets are important, but you said the thing you're writing isn't."

"All right," she sighed, in defeat. "But don't laugh at me, it's rather silly." She handed the notebook.

"If it's yours, it can't be silly. And I won't laugh."

He opened the notebook at the first page, and flipped them slowly.

"A diary?"

"No, a log! I write down some events, with details. I don't talk about me in there."

He read a random entry.

_April 12th:_  
We're on spring already, and yet, the temperature dropped and it snowed today. A lot. Suddenly, the streets were filled by mountains of white. At first, it looked pretty, but as the time passed, Tomoeda was buried in it.  
And the next morning, the snow vanished. It's not like they took it away: the trees' branches should have at least some of it, or they should be wet. However, they look normal, like it never snowed in the first place.  
Like always, nobody seems to find this strange. 

"It snowed on April?"

"Yes, but it's not the weirdest thing I've seen. Nobody believes me, and Chiharu-chan thinks I'm crazy, but in this town abnormal things keep happening. It stopped in summer, but they're happening again since this semester started. It has happened to me as well! We saw a ghost in the woods, I bought a book and it disappeared the next morning... there's something going on in here. Something paranormal, I mean. You don't believe me as well, right, Eriol-kun?"

Eriol was in silence, glancing at the journal. Naoko had recorded every event she had witnessed related to the Cards and himself, and catalogued it as supernatural. Astounding, for a non-magical person, to have such a logic and instinct! He had never imagined it; he knew his friend had a huge imagination, but he didn't expect her to suspect. He looked at her with respect.

"Actually, I do believe you. I was also sure something is going on, way before I read your log."

"You do?! You're not kidding me, or lying to me?"

"Why would I? You're evidently serious about it... and so am I. You know, I do believe, blindly, in magic."

She couldn't hold it longer. She hugged him, grateful. After he shook his shock out, he gently patted her back, beaming. She was so soft and warm.

Apart from Nakuru, nobody had hugged him since he arrived to Japan (and Nakuru's hugs are more on the glomping side, mind you.) Maybe he should tell her the truth; she might not be scared by that, hopefully.

 

**Act IV: if she listened to his story**

He invited her to a tea party on a Sunday afternoon. Eriol had lent her one of his books, but it wasn't a literature one. It was more of a less than ordinary biographical book. Stories about real life wizards. He told her to read through page 68 to 71, as it was "his favorite"; he didn't bother in explaining they weren't fiction. Not yet, at least.

She appeared at the doorsteps at 5 o'clock. She was wearing her best dress, and her mouth was open in awe while she gazed at the mansion. Everything was gorgeous and elegant to Naoko's eyes: the gardens, the architecture, the antiques, the furniture, the silky, blue Chinese clothes Eriol was wearing, the pastry at the dining table. It was like a dream, like a fairytale.

"Did you make all of this?" she whispered.

"Yes. I didn't know what kind of cake you prefer, so I baked one of every kind. I guess it would've been easier to ask you before, but the look on your face made it worth it."

"You're insane. All of this is just for the two of us? There's nobody else here?"

"One of my roommates is here, but he's not eating any of this. He's sensitive to sugar, you see. I'll introduce you later."

They drank some green tea, and talked about the regular topics. It was time to do it.

"Naoko-san. Did you read my book?"

"Yeah! I brought it to return it to you. You were right: Clow-san sounded so interesting."

"You think so?" he sniggered. "Did you know he spent his last years in Tomoeda?"

"Wait... are you saying those stories were real?"

"I never told you they weren't. I have proof the man existed. He was the former owner of this house, and there are documents written by him all over the place. And no, I'm not joking."

"Really?!" Her eyes widened. "But he wasn't a wizard, was he?"

"Oh, I'm afraid he was. The papers I'm talking about are, most of them, notes about spells and potions, except for a few cooking recipes." He handed some parchments to her. "They are in English or Chinese, but I understand what they say. And I can assure you it's no good. Let's go to the living room, and I'll explain some stuff to you, shall we?"

Instead of his red armchair, Eriol sat in a cozy sofa, in front of a coffee table full of open books. Naoko sat by his side, curious.

"Clow Cards..." He began. "When unleashed, they will bring chaos to the world. They are special cards created by Clow Reed. Each one is alive and has its own special powers. They do as they please, and on top of that, ordinary people can't control them. That's why Clow made a special book and created two guardians. Years later, he died, and the book went somewhere else, waiting for its new owner. But Clow predicted the cards would get free and would have to be sealed again. There's a person destined to do that, and be chosen as the new master, by the cards and guardians."

"Whoa! It sounds like a fantasy novel! And it's real, you say?"

"Everything happened. Don't you think it would explain the strange things you have seen?"

"But if the wizard is dead, is it the new master?"

"Not really. The cards are mischievous beings, so maybe it was their doing before they got sealed. Your book, for instance, could be The Create card."

"Oh my! That's so exciting!"

"However, there were no events on summertime. According to the documents, and as Clow was a clairvoyant and knew what's happening now in his own era, after the cards get their new owner, their power will decrease. The only way to survive is a change of powers. And in order to do that, some magical events will happen in town, made by a third person. That's Clow's will."

"Then... there's a wizard behind all this?"

"Exactly. Do you think it's a good or a bad person?"

"Well, he or she is trying to help. And even though Rika-chan almost drowns, and Sakura-chan and you were trapped in the mountain during a blizzard... nobody was actually hurt, right? They can't be bad. Cards weren't bad, either. Clow wasn't bad."

"So you believe my story?"

"I know you well, I can tell when you're being a goofball like Yamazaki, and when you're being serious. And I've never seen you that serious before, Eriol-kun. So you must think it's real."

He smirked, satisfied.

"Then I'll let you meet Spinel Sun."

 

**Act V: if she met the wizard**

Eriol lead her upstairs, and they entered a room. On the bed, laid what it looked like a black kitty plushie, but there was nobody else. He went towards the bed, and Naoko noticed the plush had blue wings sewed to its back.

"Hey, wake up." He poked the toy. She almost jumped when it opened its eyes and moved its head.

"Oh my God..."

"Naoko-san, this is Spinel Sun. Spinel, this is Naoko."

"How do you do." The winged cat flew to the girl, who was paralyzed. He offered his paw, and she managed to shake it with her thumb and index finger.

"What do you think?" The British boy asked. "Are you scared?"

"Why should I?" she laughed. "It's so... amazing, and cute. What is it?"

"I'm not cute," corrected Spinel. "I'm smarter than you."

"Naoko-san thinks even dragons are cute, so take it as a compliment: even in your real form, you'd still be cute for her. You see, Spinel Sun is one of my two guardians; I created him to protect me."

"Your... but then... oh my... are you..."

"A wizard, yes. Actually, I was born with a mission, and for the sake of said mission I came to Tomoeda. Can you figure it out?"

"You're the one behind all of this!"

"Correct. I'm sorry I had to keep it as a secret from you, but I haven't told anyone. Not even to the Card Mistress. You're the only one that knows I'm the culprit. Are you... afraid, mad at me, maybe disappointed?"

"Of course not!" she looked at his eyes, shining. "I'm so happy I've begun to think I'm dreaming. And I'm honored, as you trusted me enough to tell me the truth. Magic do exist! I was always right then!"

"Is the secret safe with you?" he put his hands over hers.

"I won't tell anyone, and even if I do, they'd never believe me anyway!" she snickered. "Oh, one thing..."

"What is it?"

"The card owner, is it Sakura-chan?"

"How did you..."

"Well, she was the first person you talked to. You're always gentle with her, and you're watching over her all the time."

"Oh, she's good!" Spinel admitted.


End file.
